Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1887-11-05
A tvND0N LETTER.
DETAILS OF THE UNEM-
PLOYED" AGITATION.
Social.Dem0crats nj Work-The Po.
lice Again Sympathy for Con.
dcmned Chicag0ms - A
Fighting Socialist.
Democracy.

LONDON, Oct. l6. The bitterly
cold weather which has suddenly
come upon us has brought the un-
employed question again to the front.
For some considerable time past the
outcasts of the metropolis have taken
up their abode every night in Ira
falgar Square, their numbers increas-
ing every night. On Tuesday last
the West End was startled by pro-
cess ,ns Of these poor creatures pa
rading the streets with red and black
flags, demanding "Work or Bread"
The next day they paraded the city,
and held meetings. On Friday af-
ternoon, after meeting of 1000 in
the Square, they marched to the
House and sent in a deputation to
interview the Lord Mayor. The
latter refused to see the deputation
and q meeting of some thousands
was held afterwards outside the
Mansion House, at which the con-
duct of the Lord Mayor, in refusing
to see the unemployed deputation,
was vigorously denounced. The pa
rado was again started, but as the
day was drawing to a close the ranks
of the demonstrators thinned consid-
erably. When only about 200 re-
manned Of tho procession the police
without any warning violently at.
tackled and dispersed them, seizing
the red and black flags and injuring
several persons. Meetings were also
held yesterday and to-day, and the
unemployed say they will continue
meeting and parading, each time
growing larger in numbers until
their demands are attended to.
Needless to say these parades of
starving men have caused u great
scare. and the Getty" men are call
ing loudly for the paradcs and meet
ings to be suppressed. This is the
first time the unemployed have ever
taken action of themselves. IIth-
erto the Social Democratic Fedora
ton has always voiced their discon-
tent, and it has seemed to many So
cial-Democrats y hopeless task to
rouse the unemployed out of their
despair and apathy. But that task
seems at last accomplished, and now
the unemployed are boldly proclaim
ing their refusal to starve any longer
in silence with plenty around them.
This will have good effect upon he
local authorities. The various
branches of the S. d. f. have sent
communications to their local au.
thorlties setting forth the proposals
of the S. ID. L. for the alleviation of
the distress and providing useful
work at reasonable rate of wages
without the intervention of contrac-
tors. The authorities have ac-
knowlcdged these letters with far
more courtesy than in previous years.
The tone of the capitalist press, too,
even while abusing the Social Demo
Gratis whom they say are at the bot
tom of all the trouble, has entirely
changed. The papers no longer dis
pute the fact that there is in our
midst large number of men and
women who are becoming desperate
through want and misery.
The infamous sentence of death on
the Chicago Socialists has caused a
great deal of Indignation here. AT
nearly all the meetings of the S. d.
T. in London and the provinces for
the last ten days, numbering about
100, resolutions expressing sympathy
with the condemned men and de-
nouncing the sentence of death,
have been passed with acclamation.
The Anarchists have held a meeting
in London, and last Friday crowd
ed meeting of the combined Socialist
bodies was held at Southplace lnsti-
tute for the same purpose. The So
cial-Democratic Federation, to COM
| nlate this sariea nf maatinpa will II